I had decided in the winter of 2006 that 2007 would be a marathon year for me. The term can sometimes be used to signify the exertion of energy to obtain various goals in life, but I meant it in the literal sense - once again I would rise up on these massive pillars of energy I call my legs and transport my body over 26.2 miles of road. Although the Portland marathon in my home town is consistently rated as one of the best marathons in the U.S. I thought if I'm going to spend that much time training then I wanted to do a destination marathon. We go to Maui every other year, and 2007 was our year. I found that Maui indeed has a marathon, and we planned accordingly.Our condo is on the west side of the island, and the marathon start is near the airport in the town of Kahului, then south on the 380 to the Honoapiilani highway where we then run northwest through Lahaina to the finish at the Westin Maui at Whalers Village. You can visit a detailed map of the route here.
The race would be at the end of our stay, so we had plenty of activities to look forward to with the marathon being the capstone. I decided to get in a few runs to acclimate myself to the island but being careful to not burn out so close to the marathon. Sherry and I have a nice route that we enjoy through lower Honoapiiliani highway and then winds up a steep hill to a luxuriousy neighborhood with fantastic multi million homes. I ran great and blasted up the hill like it was nothing. Later in the week I ran a few short runs on the treadmill at the resort. Our resort has a fitness center with four treadmills, two looking out at the pool and the other two facing a wall sized mirror. The two 'good' treadmills were occupied so I took one facing the mirror. It was interesting to watch my gait. As I ran I noticed that my right leg splays outward at a very slight angle, maybe 2-3 degrees. I had a remarkable moment of clarity! When I tire on a long run, I've noticed a peculiar very light scuffing, actually more of a brushing; as I lightly touch my left heel with my right heel. Now I could see that it was because of the slight angle when I run. Mystery solved.Race day! The buses left the Maui Westin at 3:30 AM to deposit us in Kahului with plenty of time before the 5:30 AM start. I need time to wake up and not be rushed, so I set the alarm for 2:30 AM (the Westin was a 10 minute drive from our condo). I had carefully laid out my running gear the night before, so I enjoyed a leisurely shower and dressed with a half hour to spare to sip coffee and enjoy the pre-dawn warm breeze on the lanai. Sherry rose about 3:00 AM and drove me to the buses, kissed me goodbye and wished me a great run. I boarded the first bus out of the Westin and we headed down the highway on the marathon course. It was not lost on me that in the pre-dawn blackness that many hours later I would arrive back at the same place with my only means of transportation being the legs beneath me.
We arrived at the start line with more than an hour to kill. The time went fast though, wandering around, looking at everybody and stretching for the race. As I watched everyone gear up it dawned on me that I had not brought my goo! I was munching on some sourdough pretzel bites I took on the bus and realized that they must suffice to be my energy source throughout the race. I crammed the back pocket of my running shorts with bites.
Soon it was time to move to the start line. A nervous energy was apparent, everyone was ready to get the show on the road! As we queued up, the announcer asked us to observe the singing of the national anthem. Tears welled up in my eyes as groups all around the crowd (there were about 1,200 runners total) softly sang along with the singer. Then, we received a traditional Hawai'in blessing. I'm not sure what the words were, but it lifted my heart nonetheless. Instead of a starting gun - a blowing of the conch shell set us off!
I don't see well without my glasses, OK I'm probably close to legally blind but Sherry and I did not know what to expect. I was hoping she could meet me on the course and swap my prescription sunglasses for my regular clear glasses that I would need to start in the darkness with. Not wanting to risk it though I decided to leave my glasses at the condo and start with my sunglasses even in the dark. I bought some croakies to let them rest around my neck so I ran the first 5-6 miles in darkness, and with some focus issues! However, there were runners all around me and it did not present a problem.
As we began the run, some people around me were chatting and I met a girl from Beaverton Oregon, which borders my town of Tigard! Cool to meet a neighbor at a race on Maui. I broke a rule of racing three times - I have a tenet of never trying anything new in a race. So here I was - a hat on my head, which I've never done; carrying pretzel bites to eat; which I've never done in a race, and running a race with my iPod. We'll come back to that in a moment.
As we ran down the highway bordered by tall sugar cane fields, an unusual sight began to appear in my blurry vision. Ghosts were coming out of the sugar cane! Multiple apparitions began to move in and out of the cane. Indulge me in an indiscrete moment gentle reader - I realized that it was runners leaving the road to relieve themselves in the privacy of the sugar cane fields. I would NEVER do anything like that...
Anyway, as the light of the dawn broke behind us I saw a shadow of what appeared to be the horns of a bull behind me! Glancing back I saw a guy running with a Viking helmet. OK, whatever. But he had hand written on his shirt "running for peace". In a Viking helmet. Well, we all know that in our history classes we were taught that Vikings were a gentle race, interested only in a peaceful harmony and coexistence with those that they came into contact with.
Soon I saw Ma'alea harbor, and our first glimpse of the ocean. It was inspiring to then see, even without my glasses, Molokini rising up out of the sea. I had created a running playlist and as OMC started singing "How Bizarre" a bizarre thing happened. Two Japanese runners dressed as bowling pins passed me. Bowling pins? I had no idea what the significance was but it was truly bizarre.
The miles went by, and for the rest of the course I would have the ocean in view. It was overcast but not cloudy, just a haze that took the edge of the sun off. About mile 10 I figured it was time for a little sustenance. Hmmm - the sourdough pretzel bites to the rescue! Well, let me brutally honest at the risk of being potentially disgusting. The miles and the sweat had began to break down the bites, so you might say they were kind of mushy and pre-digested if you will. Hey, it's just carbohydrates - a little mushy, I just pretended they were salty oatmeal and gagged them down.
I suppose it was mile 13 when Sweet Child 'o Mine by Guns and Roses came on. I was in my moment - a good solid pace, the ocean next to me, and slowing a bit so I could sing at the top of my weary lungs "she's got a smile that seems to me, reminds me of childhood memories, where everything was as fresh as the bright blue sky". Seeing some local surfer dudes and wahines I nodded to them like "hey, we're cool - your're surfin and I'm running, and like we are so cool doing our thing man". I thought they would understand as I started wailing the chorus "ooooOOOOO sweeeEEEEeeet cHilD 'o MiNe". I tried to flash them the Hawai'in 'hang loose' salute but got confused and flipped them off. OK, just kidding.
However, I'm sure that there is a luau going on somewhere right now on Maui, and as the Poi and the pork is flowing that same group are watching some waves ushering in a sunset, and one of them is saying "hey remember that dork on the race" and they will all laugh except for the beautiful girl with the long brown hair and green eyes who secretly thinks I'm the most studly thing she ever saw - I swear I saw it in her eyes as a smile creased her delicate face as I plodded by, but then perhaps it was just gas.
Mile 16 approached and went into mile 17. I stopped at a water station and grabbed cup of water. As I slowed to drink it, my knee started hurting bad. Real bad. I'd never had the kind of pain I was experiencing. The thought even crossed my mind that I may DNF (did not finish). I have never, ever not finished a race. I walked, nay limped; for about a quarter mile before I started to run again. Oddly enough it did not hurt when I ran. But I could tell my pace was in ruins. That's OK though, my goal was just to finish.
At mile 19 I was struggling. I thought I would disassociate from the pain and selected a philosophy lecture I had on the iPod. I started to listen and contemplate the relationship between the material brain and our soul, mind and matter. Does the mind matter? Never mind. What's the matter? Oh yes I pondered the breadth and depth of our metaphysical, existential lives. And had slowed down to about a mile per hour pace! OK Dave, time to start associating with the race again.
I cranked up the playlists to some running favorites - "dum, dum dum dum, dum dum dum, dum - dum. It's the eye of the tiger it's the thrill of the fight, rising up to the challenge of our rival". Like Rocky Balboa I pummeled the air with my fists and summoned the courage and energy from deep inside and passed a 70 old runner. Who then passed me back. I kicked him in the shin and kept going.
Finally - mile 20! Six miles to go. Six miles is nothing. Six miles is not even a warm up. In my training I was consistently running 8 mile plus runs without even breaking a sweat, negating any need to apply deodorant to my underarms. But six miles after 20 was a little daunting. At mile 22 there were some Japanese kids with a big basket of treats. One of them handed me something, I don't know what it was; in a cellophane wrapper. It kind of looked like a round Hostess Twinkie. I tried to talk to them but the langauge barrier was insurmountable. I still don't know what it was I ate that day, but it was good and I was grateful.
Mile 23 was painful. It was just flat hard. My knee was still hurting bad, and everything in me was screaming to stop. But with only 3 miles to go I perservered. The 70 year old guy had caught up with me, and I had to kick his oxygen bottle away from him to get him behind me again. Running through the Front Street mile, past Snorkel Bob's and the Jesus Coming Soon church (yes, right about now would be fine with me Lord) I had two miles to go. Then I saw something that brought tears to my eyes. A purple unicorn was offering me a latte! Oh, sorry that was another hallucination talking.
There was a sign on the road that said "BELIEVE IN YOURSELF". It was a very emotional moment. Seriously, I had to brush away a few tears. It wasn't a commercial made-Nike logo'd Alberto Salazar type of bling - it was just a piece of cardboard that someone had scrawled on with a felt tip pen. I was so moved, I'll never forget that as long as I live - two miles to go now - I believe in myself! I could do anything for two miles. I could do cartwheels for two miles. I could hopscotch two miles. I could crawl for two miles, grinding the asphalt into my knees and leaving a trail of blood, sweat and tears as my legacy as I hobble across the finish lines on the stumps of my legs. But of course that was not necessary.
Oh dear reader, lest you think I'm bloviating, do let me assure you that those two miles were painful. But, I dug deep down inside again and actually ran those last two miles hard. I earned those miles. I had just run TWENTY FOUR MILES and two measly more were not going to stop me. As I looked across the water to the Maui Westin it seemed 30 miles away, but it grew gradually closer and closer until finally I had one mile to go. Perhaps it was coincidence, but the timing couldn't be better - the familiar strains of one of rock's most famous songs caressed my tired ears. To some, the Maui Marathon may have been run on the "Highway to Hell", but I finished to "Stairway to Heaven"! Isn't that awesome. And then, there was Sherry. Screaming her lungs out for me, ahh it lifted my heart! Seeing the finish line at last! "And as I wind on down the road, my shadow taller than my soul...yes I'm buying the stairway, to..heaven". I DID IT! I FINISHED THE MAUI MARATHON! I had just enough energy to blow air kisses to the crowd.
And I'll probably never do it again!
